Most posts have our #1 line as Schwartz-Lehtera-Tarabanko, but is Lehtera a legit 1C? Doesn't seem like he's earned 1C responsibilites just yet. Are we putting him there because we know 91 is a 1RW and there's the whole "chemistry" argument? Why not Stastny as 1C? Just askin, don't attack.

No, he's not.

I personally don't put Stastny with Tarasenko because I didn't think they looked good at all together when they played last year (maybe due to Stastny's injury though) and in the past Stastny has played his best with a big winger (Stewart, also Jaskin to a certain extent last season). For that reason, I hope they move Backes to wing with Stastny.

No. Lehtera is a decent 2nd line C that is super lucky that he has good chemistry with our best player. To me, Lehtera is a C that looked gassed most of last season and looked like crap with anyone not named Tarasenko flanking him. He has a lot to prove this season IMO. He's listed as being the C on the same line as Tarasenko because of the chemisty...not because he's a legit #1 C.

Last year Lehtera was brought in because of his chemistry with Frank.

This year he should have better chemistry after adjusting to the NHL and the Blues. I think throughout the year Hitch will mix and match. We'll probably see Stastny and Lehtera swap between 1 and 2

Imo, Stastny is our #1 center.

Lehtera will be a #1 C only by default as he's Tank's preferred centerman. However, by league standards, no..He's no where close.

Granted, not everything is based simply by point totals, but among centers, he ranked 48th in points last year.

UMSLBlues12 wrote:No, he's not.

I personally don't put Stastny with Tarasenko because I didn't think they looked good at all together when they played last year (maybe due to Stastny's injury though) and in the past Stastny has played his best with a big winger (Stewart, also Jaskin to a certain extent last season). For that reason, I hope they move Backes to wing with Stastny.

Or maybe Backes? He just isn't a very good center. The GM's at BT even know it.

Regarding Lehtera, he isn't and appeared severely gassed at the end of last season. I don't mind him in that #1 center role given that he's centering Tarasenko and likely Schwartz.

Doug Glatt wrote:Last year Lehtera was brought in because of his chemistry with Frank.

This year he should have better chemistry after adjusting to the NHL and the Blues. I think throughout the year Hitch will mix and match. We'll probably see Stastny and Lehtera swap between 1 and 2

I agree that Lehtera will improve overall this year.

Look at Tarasenko's improvement over the first two years. I'm not saying Lehtera is at the skill level of Tarasenko, because we all know he's not. However, it's clear that for most players there is an adjustment that is necessary when coming over from the KHL.

HockeyFan85 wrote:

Doug Glatt wrote:Last year Lehtera was brought in because of his chemistry with Frank.

This year he should have better chemistry after adjusting to the NHL and the Blues. I think throughout the year Hitch will mix and match. We'll probably see Stastny and Lehtera swap between 1 and 2

I agree that Lehtera will improve overall this year.

Look at Tarasenko's improvement over the first two years. I'm not saying Lehtera is at the skill level of Tarasenko, because we all know he's not. However, it's clear that for most players there is an adjustment that is necessary when coming over from the KHL.

This.

I think we will see more of what Lehtera & Tank did early in the year, but all year long this year.

I think a lot of people forget that it was Lehtera's first NHL season.

I also think a lot of people forget how good Lehtera was at first when he was playing just on instincts. I can almost promise Tarasenko let him know how to train over the summer to get better acclimated to the NHL. Lehtera might not be a #1 C on most teams, but he is on this one, that's my expectation for this coming season.

I also expect improvement from Stastny. In effect, we don't necessarily have a true #1 Center but we do have two good #2's.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but there is also the potential for Fabbri to be a #1 in a couple years.

blueslifer wrote:I also think a lot of people forget how good Lehtera was at first when he was playing just on instincts. I can almost promise Tarasenko let him know how to train over the summer to get better acclimated to the NHL. Lehtera might not be a #1 C on most teams, but he is on this one, that's my expectation for this coming season.

I also expect improvement from Stastny. In effect, we don't necessarily have a true #1 Center but we do have two good #2's.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but there is also the potential for Fabbri to be a #1 in a couple years.

From everything we've seen from the Blues so far, it appears Fabbri will play wing at the NHL level.

UMSLBlues12 wrote:

blueslifer wrote:I also think a lot of people forget how good Lehtera was at first when he was playing just on instincts. I can almost promise Tarasenko let him know how to train over the summer to get better acclimated to the NHL. Lehtera might not be a #1 C on most teams, but he is on this one, that's my expectation for this coming season.

I also expect improvement from Stastny. In effect, we don't necessarily have a true #1 Center but we do have two good #2's.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but there is also the potential for Fabbri to be a #1 in a couple years.

From everything we've seen from the Blues so far, it appears Fabbri will play wing at the NHL level.

I think we could eventually see Barbashev centering Jaskin and Fabbri. I actually have really high hopes for Barbashev. I think he can be our #1C some day.

The contract extension tells me a lot. I think they made this deal when they did with the idea that he could establish himself in the NHL as a 1C/2C much like Stastny. Given the AAV of the extension, he is either going to be a bargain as a 1C/2C like they hoped or an overpaid 3C.

The thing that makes me unsure is that I just don't know how much room he has to develop. I wasn't a huge fan of Lehtera or of Army signing him last week for the next few years and already calling him a top six forward...he really wasn't last year and how much more is a 27 year old going to progress?

Oates2Hullie450 wrote:The thing that makes me unsure is that I just don't know how much room he has to develop. I wasn't a huge fan of Lehtera or of Army signing him last week for the next few years and already calling him a top six forward...he really wasn't last year and how much more is a 27 year old going to progress?

I don't know that "develop" is the word I would use. He clearly needs to improve his conditioning, but he also need to learn to protect himself better on the smaller rink. If he can do both of those things and get the most out of his talent, I think his ceiling is an entire season of his first 20+ games of last season.

If you get that kind of production from Tarasenko with Lehtera as his center, does it matter if he's not a "#1 caliber center"?

Let Tarasenko and Lehtera do their thing and use Stastny to elevate what could be a lethal second pairing with Steen and Fabbri/Backes.

Chicago has won two cups without their best center playing consistently with their best winger.

barnburner wrote:Imo, Stastny is our #1 center.

What does pizza have to do with this?

MissouriMook wrote:

Oates2Hullie450 wrote:The thing that makes me unsure is that I just don't know how much room he has to develop. I wasn't a huge fan of Lehtera or of Army signing him last week for the next few years and already calling him a top six forward...he really wasn't last year and how much more is a 27 year old going to progress?

I don't know that "develop" is the word I would use. He clearly needs to improve his conditioning, but he also need to learn to protect himself better on the smaller rink. If he can do both of those things and get the most out of his talent, I think his ceiling is an entire season of his first 20+ games of last season.

Agreed, mook.

Lehtera's main problem was consistency related to conditioning. He simply wore down, imo. I think many expected this to happen at some point last season with Lehtera. The NHL schedule is a beast compared to other leagues.

I expect a big improvement in consistency this season. Mentally he should already know that he can hang against the big boys after the early season success he had last year. Now it is about sustaining that success.

Also I'm not saying he is a late bloomer, but just look at our own Steen or a more recent example would be Belesky. Some guys don't realize their potential until their mid to late 20's.

Doug Glatt wrote:

MissouriMook wrote:

Oates2Hullie450 wrote:The thing that makes me unsure is that I just don't know how much room he has to develop. I wasn't a huge fan of Lehtera or of Army signing him last week for the next few years and already calling him a top six forward...he really wasn't last year and how much more is a 27 year old going to progress?

I don't know that "develop" is the word I would use. He clearly needs to improve his conditioning, but he also need to learn to protect himself better on the smaller rink. If he can do both of those things and get the most out of his talent, I think his ceiling is an entire season of his first 20+ games of last season.

Agreed, mook.

Lehtera's main problem was consistency related to conditioning. He simply wore down, imo. I think many expected this to happen at some point last season with Lehtera. The NHL schedule is a beast compared to other leagues.

I expect a big improvement in consistency this season. Mentally he should already know that he can hang against the big boys after the early season success he had last year. Now it is about sustaining that success.

Also I'm not saying he is a late bloomer, but just look at our own Steen or a more recent example would be Belesky. Some guys don't realize their potential until their mid to late 20's.

Like Patrik Berglund? Asking for a friend.

NO